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Fun Facts
5 - Le Stade De France has a max capacity of 81,338, making it Europe’s fifth-largest
4 - The French national stadium is one of 27 stadiums rated Category 4 (highest) by FIFA
3 - Thierry Henry scored one of the 3 golden goals in a major international final when France beat Cameroon in the 2003 Confederations Cup
2 - The French national team have won 2 major trophies there - the 1998 World Cup & the 2003 Confederations Cup
1 - It’s the only stadium on the globe to have hosted both the Football World Cup final and the Rugby World Cup final
How to reach Stade De France Stadium, Paris?
The French national stadium is found near France’s capital city, Paris. Its exact location is in St-Denis, a Parisian suburb. It is roughly 3km north of the Paris (proper) city limits and 8 kilometres from the Louvre museum.
The stadium is quite easily accessible via any public transport, as most of them include it on their route. By metro, one can take line 13 from Montparnasse, Invalides & Saint-Lazare - roughly 25, 20 and 15 minutes away respectively. By road, the A1 & A86 motorways can be taken, with exit 2 (for A1) & exit 9 (for A86) getting you there.
Stade De France Tourist Information
The Stade De France offers both French & English tours, which take about an hour followed by 30 in the museum. Between 11am - 4pm, one can find up to 5 French tour slots and 2 English ones between 10:30am - 2:30pm. They cost around 15 euros.
One can stay at the Courtyard by Marriott, or at the Hotel Campanille if your budget is stricter. Food & drinks are easily available, as it is only a short distance from the Paris city-centre.
Stade De France Map, Seating Arrangement & Car Parking
The Stade De France has 3 main galleries - the upper,medium and lower. Because of its unique design, it offers a great view of the pitch all around those, which makes any ticket very much worth getting. The most expensive seats are in the director’s box
One can drop off one’s vehicle and fetch it up to 2 hours after the event; it will be guarded and taken care of at the parking lot. Motorcycles and public transport also have paid spaces in which they can be left at for relative charges.
Stade De France Pitch & Architecture
The Stade De France became notable for being one of the few of its time to use software simulations to predict how it would look when completed.
It boasts a movable stand to expose the athletics track that surrounds it, and its roof houses all of the lighting & sound needed at any moment. It has a 13,000 ton roof which protects supporters without ruining visibility; including a tinted glass center which filters out infrared radiation.
While the pitch does not have underground heating, in 2006 two new giant screens were added - each with over 4 million LEDs, and 196sqm in size!
The playing surface was first sown - yes, sown - in 1998 using almost a billion seeds! These days, rolls of grass are used as times have improved. Changing the pitch takes a total of 8 days - 3 for preparation and the rest for its installation.
Stade De France History
Le Stade De France was built in 1998 in order to host that year’s World Cup.
Its first stone was laid in 1995, as the French sought to build a 70,000+ seater stadium for the World Cup - up until then, their biggest stadium only sat 45,000. After 31 months of work on its construction, who else but Zinedine Zidane to inaugurate it with a 1-0 goal in a friendly victory over Spain in 1998?
In fact, it’s where this season’s Champions League winner Zidane led his team to a semi-final victory over Croatia (2-1) - and ultimate glory in the final against Brazil (3-0).
This year, it has been chosen to host the Euro final, along with a quarter-final and a last-16 fixture.
At club level, it has played host to 2 Champions League finals already. In 2000, Real Madrid defeated Valencia 3-0 in the first final with two teams from one country. 6 years later, the mercurial Ronaldinho led Barcelona to a 2-1 victory over Arsenal there.
The French national stadium was notoriously the victim of a heinous terrorist attack by terror group ISIL in November 2015 as England beat France 2-0 in a friendly. French President Francis Hollande was watching the match as several explosions and gunfire shattered the peace outside the stadium. Unfortunately, one bystander was killed by the 2nd of 3 suicide bombers - part of the deadliest attacks in France since World War 2.
The South African rugby team will have fond memories of this stadium as they won their 2nd World Cup there against the English in 2007. Cameroon however, were defeated by a Thierry Henry golden goal in the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup final. The two team captains lifted the trophy in unison in homage to Marc Vivien-Foe; who tragically died in the semi-final against Colombia.
Outside of sport, it’s regularly used for the biggest events in France. RnB singer Beyonce will be taking her world tour there after the Euro ends (21st July). Other great names of all music like Rihanna, Coldplay, Eminem, U2 & AC/DC have all graced it.
